Firefighters intervene on rue de l'Abbe-Gregoire in Paris' 6th district near the scene where an appartment building explodedERIC FEFERBERG/AFP/Getty Images

Fire services in France are responding to reports of a large explosion in central Paris. The blast rocked a building in the rue Bérite in the 6th arrondissement south of the river Seine, not far from the famous Luxembourg Gardens.

At least five people were slightly injured, police sources told the local broadcaster iTele. The explosion said to have been caused by a gas leak.

Numerous citizens tweeted of hearing a large explosion and posted photos from the scene depicting smoke billowing from a residential building, with the part of the top floor engulfed by flames. Later images showed the aftermath of the blast that caused the house front to partially collapse and debris scatter down on the street.